


Sunrise, Sunset

by ItsAlwaysBloodMagic



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: M/M, Marriage Proposal, Post-Canon, Stargazing, Verse 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-10
Updated: 2018-02-10
Packaged: 2019-03-16 08:43:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,020
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13632777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ItsAlwaysBloodMagic/pseuds/ItsAlwaysBloodMagic
Summary: He was calm, now, lulled by love and the last light of the evening.  He flexed his left hand.  The familiar weight of a small, velvet-lined box settled into his palm.  He couldn’t count the number of times he’d done this, flexed and released, a nervous tic that had developed over the past week.  He’d grown used to hiding it, positioning the hand so blue sparks wouldn’t give him away.





	Sunrise, Sunset

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Ignoct Week Timed Quest Day 5: "You put WHAT in the armiger?"
> 
>  
> 
> [Come find me on Tumblr.](https://itsalwaysbloodmagic.tumblr.com/)

Noctis’ hands were sweating. He wiped them on the front of his pants, took a deep breath, and looked himself in the mirror once again. "You can do this," he told his reflection. "It’s just Specs. You’ve known each other since you were practically babies."

Okay. He was ready.

He headed out the door.

____

They sat on a bluff overlooking the vast deserts of Leide, the soft glow of runes still dim in the evening light. A dust storm was kicking up in the distance, blurring the line between hard-packed dirt and orange-cast skies. Red-yellow tones filled the horizon, ribboned with purple and deep, deep blue. Desert sunsets always seemed to stretch on forever. Noctis couldn’t get enough of them.

It was a place with a history only theirs. The stones beneath them were filled with memories, of backs against blankets, hands cautiously brushing while mouths formed over syllables, tracing stories of Astrals and Kings. Later, when they were older, hands wandered, lips found each other, and the stars were forgotten. There were cracks in the stone, formed by the strike of a hammer against the flat top of tent stakes. Those memories were precious too. Tainted by the bitterness of loss, but precious nonetheless.

The morning known as the First Dawn, already recorded in primary school texts, was witnessed from this bluff. Noctis missed that one, having watched the sky turn from black to grey-green from the courtyard outside of the Citadel. He heard about it though, and the memories of that morning were tangible, stamped into the runes along with the ones they held so dear.

"Ignis," Noct said, laying a hand on his lover’s knee.

Ignis turned. Bright green eyes regarded Noctis, drinking him in. "What is it, my love?"

"I -- " he choked on his words. "You know that I love you."

"What are you on about?" Worry crept into lines formed between soft dimples, lines that had appeared only in the last few years, stamping a sweet sort of happiness onto skin that had once been flawless save for faint pock-marks left as a testament to adolescence.

Noct smiled, soft and a little bit nervous. "Um. Hold on. Here." He stood, awkward, and held out his hand. A deep breath, in and back out. "Uh,"

"Breathe, Noct."

"I am." There was an old exasperation, frustration fueled by his inability to form words when he needed them most. "Listen, I," he ran a hand through his hair. His gaze drifted off to the side. "Wow. Would you look at that." 

Ignis followed him up. Arms wrapped around waists as they stood facing the light. It was deep purple now, clouds dusted with red, the bright glowing ball of the sun just seconds from disappearing. "You have no idea what it was to live without that," Ignis said, his voice thick with emotion. He pressed his nose into the hollow of Noctis’ neck. Noctis felt cold metal and glass against his skin. Ignis’ glasses. "To live without you."

A somber silence settled over them. Noctis didn’t answer until long after the sun had finally said its goodbyes. "I know. And we never have to do it again." He was calm, now, lulled by love and the last light of the evening. He flexed his left hand. The familiar weight of a small, velvet-lined box settled into his palm. He couldn’t count the number of times he’d done this, flexed and released, a nervous tic that had developed over the past week. He’d grown used to hiding it, positioning the hand so blue sparks wouldn’t give him away.

Ignis, though… Ignis missed nothing. Sparks flew, and he followed them with his eyes. "Noctis, what on earth –"

Noct was down on one knee before he could finish, effectively cutting him off with the gesture. He cracked the box open. The ring was simple – white gold with sapphire stones set directly into the band. "Ignis Scientia," he said, voice steadied with age, "I have loved you from the very first time our palms touched." A memory; one hand grasped between two. "You have been by my side as long as I can remember." His voice started wavering, and he could feel tears prick at the sides of his eyes. He reached up to wipe them away, letting out a laugh. "Ignis - damn, this is hard. I want to be able to say that - the bit about being by my side, I mean - every day for the rest of my life."

He hazarded a look up. Ignis was crying too, tears staining his cheeks and one hand over his mouth. "Did you -- " he said, then remembered the hand and lowered it, smoothing down his shirt. He took his glasses off, cleaned them and wiped at his eyes. "Noct, did you pull that from the armiger?"

There was a beat of silence. "What? Well, yeah, I - You snoop, Specs." 

Ignis put his glasses back on. He rested his palm against his forehead in exasperation. "Whatever will I do with you?" he asked. The tone was familiar, and it made Noct’s heart sing.

"Marry me?" Hope crept into the question.

A small, private grin spread across Ignis’ face, growing until it because a wide-open smile. He helped Noctis up and pulled him close, and suddenly Noctis was face to face with the love of his life. Fondness and comfort and home swirled around them, through them, between them. The ring was forgotten in a burst of blue, box still held open by the tiny spring set inside the hinge. "Could I ever say no to you?" Ignis whispered, leaning their foreheads together. He kissed Noctis softly, tenderly. "I would be honored, Your Majesty."

Later, when the moon had come and gone and the stars shone bright as beacons, Noct produced the ring again. He slipped it onto Ignis’ finger, whispering promises of forever, of sunrises and sunsets, of night skies and vast landscapes. Each knuckle was kissed. Wrinkles and scars were traced, fingerpads mapping the stories they told. They counted stars, and told stories, and swore oaths until the sky lightened once again.

**Author's Note:**

> [Come find me on Tumblr.](https://itsalwaysbloodmagic.tumblr.com/)


End file.
